The Asking
by nerdhag
Summary: Ryder Lynn has a secret crush and a best friend willing to help. I don't own any of the characters and many of the situations depicted in this story. They belong to the incredibly talented creators and writers of Glee. Warnings: there may be talk of a past non-consensual situation in later chapters. It won't be very graphic and I'll give heads up in the chapter notes.
1. Chapter 1

Even if news of the Sadie Hawkins dance hadn't spread through the entire school before the council had finalized a date, Ryder would have known something was up. The girls of McKinley were looking at him more lasciviously than usual. If he was honest it was really starting to creep him out. It's not that he didn't like girls. He really did. In fact, if Marley hadn't started dating Jake, Ryder thought he might be able to fall for her, but the truth was, since he joined glee club there was only one person he thought of in _that_ way - Blaine Anderson.

It wasn't the first time he had a crush on a boy and he'd lusted after enough movie stars and starlets to know he was bisexual. He'd done enough research on the Internet to understand the whatfors and whys and how's of it all and he was confident enough in his sexuality to be OK with it. He just didn't know how to ask out a boy. In theory it should be the same as asking out a girl, but girls always gave him unspoken signals that his advances would be welcome. Guys never gave him those signals. He understood why. It was Lima, Ohio after all and he had heard enough about what Blaine and Finn's brother had gone through to understand the risks.

But asking out Blaine should be safe, at least in that respect. He didn't assume he was guaranteed a "yes", but at least he wouldn't be ridiculed or worse in return for affections. The problem was that he really likes Blaine. He liked him more than he had ever liked another boy _or_ girl. He saw Blaine every day in glee club, but couldn't speak to him. He ended up mumbling and stuttering and tripping over his own feet. Finn had already sentenced him to permanent booty camp and judging by the looks Blaine always gave him, he was pretty sure Blaine thought he was a blithering, bumbling idiot.

As the glee club watched Tina's performance it was pretty clear who she was singing to. Clear to everyone but Blaine that is. Blaine was completely unaware right up until Tina asked him to the dance. That level of obliviousness shouldn't be so hot, but Ryder was more charmed than ever. How could someone that attractive be that unaware of the effect he had on people. He really wanted to go to the dance with Blaine.

He had a pretty detailed fantasy about how the night would go. He pictured Blaine in a really well tailored, classic black suit and he would go easier on the gel than usual. All the better for later in the night when Ryder imagined running his fingers through Blaine's hair. He didn't know much about Blaine's home life, but he hoped his parents were proud of him and would want to take pictures by the living room fireplace. He could just imagine how good Blaine looked when he blushed from the parent induce embarrassment. He imagined them walking into the dance hand in hand, slow dancing, and in his bravest fantasies he imagined a good night kiss. He really wanted to go to the dance with Blaine. He just didn't know how to ask.

Jake interrupted him during one of his more vivid fantasies. He was just about to go in for a goodnight kiss when Jake dropped his books loudly on the table. "Hey buddy. Anyone ask you to the dance yet?"

"No, Chrissie McIntyre keeps following me to my locker, but runs off when I ask her what's up."

"Wow. Chrissie McIntyre? She's pretty hot."

Ryder just shrugged, "I guess."

Jake smiled to himself. He was starting to understand. "You want someone else to ask you."

Jake blushed to his very core. "Maybe I should be doing the asking?"

Jake thought maybe he didn't understand at all. "It's a Sadie Hawkins dance. The girls are supposed to ask the guys."

"We'll, the guys are supposed to get asked..."

"Who are we talking about here?"

_Here goes_. He looked up and for the first time looked Jake on the eyes. "It's Blaine. I want to go with Blaine."

There was a long pause while Jake processed the information and to Ryder it felt like an eternity. "Anderson? Wow. I'm not going to pretend I'm not surprised, but from a purely theoretical standpoint, I suppose I can see the attraction."

"Theoretical?"

"Yeah, I mean he's talented and smart and I suppose he's a good looking guy. Although, now that I know you're into that, I'm a little hurt that you don't want to get all up on this." Jake gestured to his own body in a way Ryder assumed was supposed to be alluring, but just made him laugh. It was just the release he needed and he silently thanked his friend for breaking the tension.

Jake was happy to see his friend relax for the first time since he had sat down. "You know, my brother got pretty close to Anderson last year. He says that he heard Blaine went through some pretty bad stuff at his old school, the one before Dalton, but that he still stood up for Kurt more than once. He fought off bullies and danced with him in front of the whole school and sang to him in the courtyard. He seems like he'd make a pretty great first boyfriend. And considering all he's been through, he must be tougher than he looks to walk into school every day in pants that tight. Don't get me started on the bowties."

Ryder blushed again and averted his eyes. Jake noticed and chuckled a little under his breath, "don't tell me?"

"What? I think the bowties are hot."

"You really do have it bad."

Ryder just groaned and put his head down on his books. He really wanted to go to the dance with Blaine.

Unfortunately, it wasn't to be. Tina had somehow convinced Blaine to change his mind and they went together. The closest he got to a slow dance was backing up Blaine on Scrubs. As he was packing up to leave that night Jake came over to check on him before he left to drive Marley home, "You doing OK?" Jake had noticed Ryder watching Blaine during 'I Only Have Eyes for You' and her was worried about his friend. He also noted where Blaine's attentions were directed and knew that Ryder wasn't the only one with a crush.

But Ryder seemed to be handling it all fairly well even if he was a little disappointed, "Yeah, sure, I mean..."

"Don't sweat it. We'll figure something out."

"We?"

"Sure. What are best friends for?"


	2. Chapter 2

Ryder was pretty proud of the advice he'd given Jake about making himself vulnerable to Marley. He just wished he could bring himself to take his own advice. He and Jake had brainstormed a list of ways to get Blaine to spend time with him. They got more outrageous as the night got later and ranged from the plausible, Ryder needed help with algebra, to the absurd, Ryder needed a sidekick to stop the impending zombie invasion. If that last one required Blaine to resurrect his Kittenboy costume, well that was just a happy coincidence.

As frustrated as Ryder was with his inability to talk to Blaine about his feelings, he was equally as happy that he was able to talk to Jake about them, "Thanks for being so cool about this. A lot of guys wouldn't be."

"The way I see it there are a lot worse people Marley and I could end up double dating with."

"Good to hear and just to keep you motivated, if things don't work out between Blaine and me, I'm asking Kitty out."

"You'd have to fight my brother for her."

"Really?! When did that happen? Is that even legal?"

"I don't ask any questions. Now that's a union that's unnatural in the eyes of God."

However, just because Jake was supportive didn't mean he wouldn't tease Ryder at every possible opportunity. He was currently singing the Twelve Days of Christmas under his breath while changing the words to be more _Blainecentric_. Considering the subject of Jake's revised Christmas classic was currently posing for the Men of McKinley calendar in a sexy Santa suit, it wasn't surprising that Ryder lost track of the lyrics somewhere between _nine Warblers warbling_ and _five dapper flings_. It wasn't Irving Berlin, but by the end Ryder was still roughly the same color as Blaine's pants, _Blaine's sinfully low slung pants_.

If Ryder thought Diva week would be any easier, he clearly underestimated the power of Freddy Mercury. Jake started chuckling when Blaine sat down at the piano and was smiling so wide by the finale that Ryder was concerned that Blaine would think _Jake_ was the one with the crush.

The fact that Ryder was last to leave the choir room wasn't lost on Jake, " Hey, you recovered yet?"

"All I could think when he leaned back expecting us to catch him was 'don't grope him, don't grope him'. How can one person be that perfect?"

"Wow. As your friend I have to tell you that once you start throwing around words like perfect, it's time to bite the bullet and talk to him."

"I know, but I've never asked out a guy before. What if I offend him? What if he likes to be the one doing the asking?"

Jake made a mental note to ask Ryder about that later, but for now just shrugged and said, "You'll never know if you don't ask."

'You'll never know if you don't ask' become Ryder's mantra for the next couple of days. He wasn't sure what was going on between Blaine and Tina, but whenever he got close to Blaine, either she was yelling or he was apologizing. He didn't think either situation was the best climate in which to ask someone on a date.

Finally, on the Friday afternoon before Mr. Schuester and Miss Pillsbury's wedding, Ryder caught Blaine alone by his locker, "um, hey? Um, Blaine?" God there was the blithering again.

"Hey Ryder, did you need something?"

Blaine seemed a little aggravated, but there was no turning back now, "Yeah, I was wondering if you'd like to go grab a cup coffee sometime? Maybe next week after all the wedding madness?"

"Did you need help with selecting a song for Glee?"

"No, um, I like boys too!" Oh god, now there was full on blurting to go with the blithering, "I mean also. I mean I like boys as well as girls."

Blaine turned toward Ryder and looked genuinely shocked, but also genuinely amused, "I have a spotty record at being a mentor and my own most recent identity crisis included me kissing Rachel Berry, but I'm definitely here if you need to talk."

_'Oh god,' _Ryder thought,_ 'he thinks I'm asking him for advice instead of on a date.' _Blaine must have noticed the concerned look on his face because he answered more directly, "Coffee sounds great. Monday after glee?"

"Um, yes, but" He was interrupted by Finn calling out to Blaine to see if he's ready.

"Great, I'll see you at the wedding and we're on for Monday."

"Come on dude," Finn yelled toward them' "you know how Kurt will be if we're late."

'_Kurt.' _Ryder mused_ 'Of course Kurt would be in town for Mr. Schue's wedding.'_

Jake walked up to Ryder carefully, clearly having witnessed the exchange, "It could have gone worse."

"How exactly could that have been any worse?"

"He could have invited Kurt along for coffee?"

"Right, Kurt. Beautiful, smart, sophisticated, I'm living in New York to become a famous actor, Kurt. What would Blaine see in me after dating someone like him?"

Jake just stared blankly.

"I'm starting to understand why there's a stereotype about gay guys having lots of female friends."

"OK, hold on, I can do this. I'm sure Kurt is great. Don't know if he would be my type even if I were into guys, but he must be pretty special for Blaine to be that into him."

"This is helping?"

"_However_, it's pretty clear that the long distance thing wasn't working for either of them and Blaine's clearly lonely. If you care about him at all, wouldn't you want to change that?"

Ryder's stomach twitched a little at the thought of Blaine being lonely, but he also didn't want to be a poor substitute for Kurt, "What if he can't get over Kurt?"

"Then you and he can just be good friends. But not best friends, because that spots taken."

"OK, let's get going then."

"Where to?"

"Shopping. If I'm going to give this another shot, I need to give Kurt Hummel a run for his money tomorrow at that wedding. What do you know about bowties?"

'Nothing. How do know so much about Kurt by the way."

Jake blushed, "I may have seen some pictures on Facebook."

"Are you cyber stalking Blaine?"

"No!"

"Well, that's a conversation we're going to be having in the very near future, but can a give you a little advice?"

"Sure."

"Don't try to out-Kurt Kurt. From what I know about him, you don't stand a chance. Give Blaine a chance to get to know you. I think he'll like authentic Ryder much better than imitation Kurt."

"Thanks man. Let's get going. I have a feeling it's going to be a long weekend."


	3. Chapter 3

Ryder woke up Monday morning feeling far too exhausted for the beginning of a week. Between the aborted wedding attempt, helping Jake woo Marley all week, Coach Sylvester's general craziness and whatever was going on with Tina the drama was enough to wear him down. But he knew what was really causing the dull ache in his chest and the general lack of motivation. It was Blaine and Kurt. He would have had to have been blind and dumb not to notice them leave the reception together only to return looking flushed and a little chagrined. He could admit it to himself. It hurt. He could get past it if it made Blain happy, but Blaine looked just a bit more invested than Kurt. Ryder had joined Glee club when Blaine was at his lowest after the breakup. He didn't know the details, but he saw how devastated Blaine was and how long it took him to recover. Regardless of his feelings for Blaine, he didn't want to see him hurt again even if it would give Ryder the opportunity to pick up the pieces. Thinking of Blaine made him remember their coffee date that afternoon. Well, not date, but they were going to be able to spend some time alone getting to know one another better. Suddenly he felt much better and started getting ready for the day.

Ryder couldn't understand the looks people were giving him as he walked down the hall toward his locker. Sure, he had dressed up a little for this afternoon's meeting with Blaine, but he was hardly Tom Ford. In fact, his designer jeans and button up shirt would still probably pale in comparison to whatever Blaine was wearing. Jake's look he understood. Jake was smirking at him as he waited for Ryder by his locker.

"Dressed up for the big date I see."

"It's not a date."

"Yeah, sorry about that. Seems like Blaine was pretty tight with the ex this weekend."

"Do you think they're back together? "

Jake didn't know how to respond. He didn't want to hurt his friend, but he and Marley had run into Blaine in the elevator on their way back to the reception and he had seemed almost giddy. He just didn't want his buddy to get his hopes up.

"I don't know, but I'll be here for you if they did."

"Thanks man. So…how did it go with Marley this weekend?"

Jake knew what Ryder was asking and while it was none of his business he knew that he was just concerned.

"It was great man. We're still taking it slow. Thanks for all your help. If it was left up to me I would have listened to my brother and be living the single life right now."

Jake cringed a little at the thought of Jake giving Marley skanky underwear.

"You'll get the hang of it. Just be yourself and let it come from the heart."

"You should take your own advice. _Tell him. _No matter how it turns out at least you'll have been honest."

Since Blaine was a senior and _really_ smart, Ryder didn't have any classes with him and Glee was cancelled due to Mr. Shue's depression. So, at the end of the day he headed to Blaine's locker meet him. That's when he saw Kurt. Kurt was still in town and currently looking amazing in a red sweater and talking to Tina and Blaine at Blaine's locker. Ryder didn't know what to do, but he wasn't going to run away. So, as Tina left and headed toward her locker, Ryder approached Blaine. Kurt seemed to notice him coming toward them and tensed up. Blaine, noticing Kurt's reaction, turned toward Ryder concerned, but his face relaxed when he saw who it was.

"Hey, Ryder!"

Ryder notice a look of recognition on Kurt's face and they both relaxed a little.

"Hey, Blaine. Are you ready?"

Blaine looked momentarily confused and then quickly paled. Ryder's heart dropped and his stomach turned. This meeting is what got Ryder out of bed this morning and Blaine didn't even remember. To his credit, Blaine seemed genuinely devastated.

"Oh my god, Ryder. We were supposed to go for coffee today. I am so sorry! With all the wedding drama and Kurt in town, I totally forgot. Did you want to come with us to the movies?"

The pit in Ryder's stomach sank a little further. No, he didn't want to tag along on their date.

"I wouldn't want to be a third wheel."

It was Kurt who chimed in, "You wouldn't be. Tina's coming too and Blaine and I are just friends."

It occurred to him that Kurt was trying to be nice, but the look on Blaine's face when Kurt said 'friends' just made Ryder angry.

"No, thanks though," Ryder said tersely, "but, Blaine, can I talk to you alone for a second?"

"Of course"

The two of them stepped far enough away from Kurt so that they wouldn't be overheard and for Kurt's part he was gracious enough to turn his attention elsewhere so they wouldn't feel uncomfortable. He was currently rearranging the photos in Blaine's locker. Ryder wondered briefly if Blaine had mentioned something to Kurt about Ryder being bisexual. He quickly determined he wouldn't mind and turned his attention back to Blaine who looked truly agonized by this point and started apologizing again.

"I'm really sorry Ryder. We can do it tomorrow after Glee."

"That sounds great. And it's OK I understand. I just want to clear something up."

Blaine looked up at him expectantly, if a little confused.

"When I asked you to coffee I didn't need advice and I wasn't looking for a mentor. I'm OK with who I am and I don't care what anyone else thinks. I'll deal with it. I asked you because I wanted to get to know you better. I wanted to spend time with you outside of glee, just the two of us."

It came out a lot more confident than Ryder was feeling. In response Blaine's eyes went wide and suddenly he broke out into the hugest smile Ryder had ever seen.

"Ryder, are you asking me out on a date?"

"Yeah, I am and if that's a problem," his eyes shot briefly to Kurt at this, "then we can call it off. But I would like very much to take you out for coffee tomorrow."

Blaine glanced at Kurt as well, and Kurt seemed to be paying a little more attention now, but Blaine returned his attention to Ryder and seemed to really look at him, including looking him over from head to toe and a realization seemed to come to him.

"Did you get dressed up for today?"

Ryder knew he was blushing to his roots by now, but there was no turning back. Besides, he was pretty sure _Blaine Anderson_ was about to agree to go out with him.

"Yeah, I stepped it up a little."

Blaine laughed at that. A genuine laugh and asked, "Weren't we just going to the coffee shop?"

"Yep, but I dressed up for _you_."

Blaine's smile was huge and genuine by this point and he responded by saying, "Well, I guess I'll just have to bring my a-game tomorrow."

"You always look great." And then Ryder realized what Blaine had just said, "so that's a yes?"

"That's a yes. But I really have to go now, so, tomorrow."

"Tomorrow."

Ryder was giddy at this point. He watched as Blaine walked back toward Kurt who closed Blaine's locker and clearly asked Blaine a question. As Blaine responded, Kurt's head immediately shot up and to look at Ryder, almost alarmed. Blaine steadied him with a hand on his forearm and looked over at Ryder apologetically. Ryder just smiled goofily, he knew, and waved to Blaine. Blaine waved back with his fingers before turning around and walking away with Kurt who was very clearly asking multiple questions and glancing back at Ryder periodically. Ryder considered this a small victory for his team and did a quick fist pump before heading off to his car. His enthusiasm was soon dampened a bit as he reminded himself that it wasn't a competition and Blaine wasn't a prize to be won. No matter what happened Kurt was clearly an important part of Blaine's life and Ryder was going to have to get used to it. His enthusiasm was dampened even more when he remembered that he only had one 'fancy' shirt and he had worn it today. He quickly texted Jake to meet him at the mall for shopping and first date strategizing.


	4. Chapter 4

Blaine woke up on Tuesday morning exhausted from nightmares he didn't fully understand. Things with Kurt seemed better than they had been since he left for New York and he had a date with Ryder that afternoon. He should have slept as well as he had in months. He tried to analyze what was bothering him but in the end wrote it off as a psychological response to an emotional weekend.

Kurt was leaving early in the morning and Blaine had to say his goodbyes the night before. Since Blaine's parents were out of town, as usual, Kurt came back to Blaine's house after the movie for what turned out to be a long overdue talk. First thing on the agenda, surprisingly, was Ryder. Blaine had asked Kurt to keep their conversation quiet for the time being. With everything that had gone on with Tina over the previous few weeks he didn't want to add anymore drama to their fragile truce. He was also still reeling from her vapor rub confession and while he understood being lonely he wasn't sure how much he trusted her judgment at this point. The result of Blaine's requested silence was that by the time they arrived at his house Kurt was ready to explode.

"So, since when is McKinley High bursting with out gay boys just lining up to date you?"

"One boy doesn't actually constitute a line. Besides, Ryder is actually bisexual and I know how you feel about that."

Kurt flinched a little at the bisexual remark. Their previous conversation concerning Blaine's own identity crisis wasn't exactly his proudest moment, "Hey, I apologized for my remarks on that particular subject. Besides, you know full well that I was just hurt because you would rather kiss Rachel than me."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. I never preferred kissing Rachel. I was just afraid of what kissing my best friend would do to our relationship. And considering how things have been lately..." Blaine's voice began to crack and he turned his face from Kurt because he knew he was close to tears. Kurt moved closer and rubbed his back in small comforting circles. It was long past time for them to have this conversation and Kurt wanted to make sure Blaine was in the appropriate condition to hear what he had to say.

"Blaine, you know you will always be my best friend. And yes, you hurt me more than anyone else ever has. I know things are rough right now and I'm sorry if I made them worse this weekend, but I just miss you so much. But the thing is, nothing has really changed. The same problems are still there." The tears were running freely down Blaine's cheeks by now, but Kurt needed to say this, "I'm still hundreds of miles away and even busier now with NYADA and you, you still need…"Kurt hesitated because he didn't want to upset Blaine anymore and he hardly knew how to broach the subject. It was probably a good deal his fault anyhow. He had pushed Blaine to transfer to McKinley and as a result Blaine's whole life revolved around him.

But Blaine didn't let the silence sit for too long. Now that they were getting into it, he needed to talk to his best friend about what had happened, if not his boyfriend, "Need what?"

"Need more than I can give you right now. I know that you've been better. You and Sam seem really close and some of the younger glee kids we met at the wedding seem to really look up to you, but you put so much of yourself into our relationship. Things between us were intense even when we were just friends, what with Karofsky and all, and you can't tell me that you were looking for a soul mate when you flirted with that boy on the stairs at Dalton."

"No, I was just looking to hold hands with a cute boy."

"Exactly. And you ended up getting pushed around more than once, having to overcome your own demons just to dance with me at my prom, transferring schools because I was too selfish to see that while Dalton wasn't right for me, it was where your friends were." Blaine started to protest but Kurt persisted, "No, Blaine, I never should have pushed you as hard as I did. And in return you put your own feelings aside to send me off to New York because you knew it was where I belonged." Kurt was crying by this point, but wanted to make Blaine understand, "I love you Blaine. And I will never regret what we have, but we both deserve something lighter, easier right now."

"I love you too." Blaine sobbed, "And I am so sorry I broke us and hurt you."

"Hey, hey. It's going to be OK. If we are meant to be together, we will be. But I think right now we both need some time apart to learn how to be in a relationship." Kurt knew he needed to be less selfish when it came to the people he loved, but he grew up having to fight to get the things he needed and it was hard sometimes to remember that Blaine needed things from him too. And Blaine, well, Blaine needed to get past his issues of abandonment and not hold on quiet so tightly. Kurt just hoped that Blaine understood what he was trying to say. If not, he figured, he would just keep trying, because he really would always love this boy.

Blaine blew his nose and sat up straight as if bracing himself for the answer to his next question, "So, Adam, is he easier? Does he treat you well?"

"Yes, but if it helps any he sings inappropriate songs to boys he just met and has his own Pips."

Blaine laughed for the first time all night and said, "Sounds like I might like him."

Kurt was glad to see Blaine smile. He wanted nothing more than to cheer him up so he asked about Ryder. "So, tell me about Ryder. I've heard a little about him from Finn, but what's he like? I'll admit when he walked toward us today at school I was a little afraid he might be your typical jock wanting to mess with us."

"Ryder is anything but your typical jock. Yeah, he plays football and basketball, but he's really sweet from what I can tell. He's kind of goofy in an endearing sort of way." Kurt's eyes started to get really big, "what?"

"Oh my god, you're dating Finn!"

"What?! No! First of all we're not dating. And second of all, so not Finn. He stood up to his jock friends when they were teasing Puck's little brother and he seems pretty confident in his sexuality."

"OK, so you're dating the guy I made up in my head sophomore year when I thought I was in love with Finn." Kurt sighed but added, "At least he seems to dress better."

"Um."

"What?"

"There may be some puffy vests."

"Blaine, what am I going to do with you?"

Blaine laughed at Kurt's exasperation with the fact that he might date someone without his impeccable fashion sense, "I don't know. As long as you'll always be my friend."

"_Best friend_, Blaine. I will be standing at the alter on your wedding day whether it's as your adoring spouse or as your best man. I mean, let's face it, someone has to keep Cooper from giving the toast in a fake Irish accent." And so the rest of the night continued on a lighter note and they parted with a hug and the promise to call each other with the dish on their new boyfriend prospects. Blaine can't say he was completely over the sadness that had haunted him for months, but he had his best friend back. He also had tacit approval to date Ryder. Kurt, of course, had insisted on picking out his outfit for the following day and only complained a little under his breath about how it would be wasted when Ryder showed up in baggy jeans and a hoody.

So Blaine got ready to face the day and was looking forward to his date. He knew he would have to be honest with Ryder about his lingering feelings for Kurt, but for the first time since he and Kurt had started dating he could picture himself with another boy. He just wished he weren't so tired.


End file.
